A Simmering of Soup

With chilling winds and frosty flakes of snow, winter has finally made its way to Missoula. And with that came my sudden craving for a tummy warming bowl of soup. I ventured out to the Good Food Store yesterday and was happy to discover that my favorite Health Valley soups were on sale! I picked up a few cans of the Chicken and Rice as well as a can of the No Sodium Added Vegetable. I also came across a new line of soups from Gluten Free Cafe and found a Veggie Noodle Soup. I bought one can of it just to try, it sounded and looked quite tasty, and I miss having noodles in my soup, so let's hope it's a winner!

Here are links to the website for these two scrumptious companies. 

http://www.myglutenfreecafe.com/index.html

http://www.healthvalley.com/

As for my soup simmering away on the stove last night, I opted for the Chicken and Rice. I spiced it up with fresh chopped celery, carrots and a red potato. I love the soup but straight out of the can, it looks a bit drab and by adding my own vegetables, it became bright and colorful and bursting with flavor and vegetables that filled my body with warmth and nourishment. I toasted some Ezekiel Sprouted Grain bread and topped it with fresh raspberry jam made from a dear friend of mine. She is very fortunate to have had a wonderful harvest and gifted me with a jar of the most amazing raspberry jam ever; tart and sweet and tingling with summer sun. The toast and jam were great compliments to the salty, steaming soup and I look forward to enjoying it again, as I was left with a small bowl of leftovers, which will be the perfect meal for another chilly day. 

Tuscany at My Dinner Plate

Over the weekend, I suddenly had this huge craving for a crunchy, freshly made salad. I had all the ingredients minus one essential: the dressing. Gluten/dairy free dressings can be challenging to find, but I was lucky enough to discover Annie's Naturals Tuscany Italian Dressing. The outcome? Best Italian dressing I have ever tasted in my life, my taste buds were dancing with delight.

This dressing is gluten free, vegan, and contains no artificial flavor or ingredients, and is free of high fructose corn syrup and preservatives. Upon opening the bottle, my senses were filled with the intoxicating aromas of oregano, basil, balsamic vinaigrette, and sun dried tomatoes. A little of this goes a long way and it made my salad a "taste sensation" as my Mom likes to say.

So if you are ever in the mood for a hint of Italy, or you just want some fabulous dressing, I highly recommend the Tuscany Italian Dressing from Annie's Naturals. I know, I sound like a blaring TV ad now, but it's true! And I just want others to discover the robust flavor and creamy texture of this stuff, it takes eating salads to a whole new level.

Happy New Year!

Well, Christmas and New Years have come and gone and once again I am baffled as to how another year is beginning anew, but I know 2012 will be full of many wonderful things to come, and I know it will be filled with good food, an outpouring of love and a fresh start for us all.

And since this is the time of year when we all make those resolutions that at first burn so bright they seem possible but soon decay into the muck and melting of snow, I have decided NOT to make any resolutions.

I am instead setting forth upon a journey to find happiness and love everyday and not bog myself down with all the "what ifs" and "whys." and worrying. If I have learned anything from 2011 it is to expect the unexpected, because no matter how hard we plan and configure our lives into perfectly sculpted statues of what we think our lives should be, the destructive hands of time and fate will crumble that statue into a million shards and we will be left sweeping up the pieces, crying over our losses and asking the always nagging questions of "Why me? Why now?" But I have to believe that we can't ask those questions, that we can't become fretting, anxious human beings full of fear and decaying hope. I believe that we need to embody every downfall, every mistake, and even every right decision, as the threads that in the end, will be stitched and mended over, and over again, creating a life that is uniquely and solely our own.

Forgive me for this departure of writing about baking and cooking and friendly foods that my body will not reject, but with the start of 2012, and my reflection of 2011, I can't help but begin to make a conscious effort to just accept each day as they come, and to bask in the blessings that fill my basket. How can I not do this, when I am loved by a man who will love me until the end of time and whom I love with every fiber of my being When I have a family who will never abandon me and whose support knows no boundaries. When I have a roof over my head, food to nourish me, a soft bed to sleep in and a loyal, little dachshund whose tail can't wag fast enough every time I walk into the room.

So in the end, I suppose I do have a New Year's Resolution, don't I?